In this post:
- Asymmetric Research has entered the Stacks ecosystem’s signer network through its delegation program as a security contributor to the Bitcoin L2.
- Asymmetric Research will reinforce the security system for Stacks’ official debut of the sBTC asset.
- According to Stacks Foundation’s announcement, sBTC will officially debut in the last quarter of 2024.
The Stacks Foundation has announced that security firm Asymmetric Research has joined the Stacks signer network to reinforce the ecosystem’s security system. Asymmetric Research will contribute to the Stacks ecosystem through the signer network’s delegation program joining other industry participants in securing the Bitcoin layer 2.
Asymmetric research has joined the Stacks ecosystem’s signer network as a security contributor through the Stacks signer network. The entity has already made significant security upgrades for the ecosystem in preparation for the forthcoming sBTC asset audits ahead of the asset’s official debut.
Asymmetric Research joins the Stacks ecosystem
Signer network contributors like Asymmetric Research are pivotal in securing deposits and withdrawals in BTC and sBTC in the ecosystem. The players facilitate a smooth transfer between the assets on the Bitcoin L2 platform.
Security layers are critical components of projects and protocols in the Web3 arena. Asymmetric Research’s security contribution represents a major addition to Stacks Network’s overall security program. This program already includes sBTC’s decentralized network of validators/signers, therefore eliminating the need to entrust a single entity and mitigating counterparty risk. Asymmetric Research will also contribute to sBTC’s design for 100% Bitcoin finality and securing sBTC at the basic consensus level of a $2.5 billion network.
Mitchell Cuevas, Executive Director at The Stacks Foundation, commented on Asymmetric Research’s entrance into the Stacks ecosystem. The executive noted that Asymmetric Research aims to contribute to yielding the best version of programmable sBTC for the Stacks ecosystem.
“With Asymmetric Research, the Stacks ecosystem is adding yet another high-caliber entity to the mix of industry leaders collaborating to make sBTC the best version of programmable sBTC available.”
–Mitchell Cuevas
Besides Asymmetric Research, other signer network contributors, including BitGo, Blockdaemon, Copper, Figment, Kiln, Luganodes, and Chorus One are working on the software infrastructure. Additionally, the software ecosystem has also witnessed contributions from 30 different institutional node operators in a bid to boost operational efficiency in the ecosystem.
Asymmetric Research has participated in mega projects that have helped reshape the Web3 ecosystem. The entity has secured some of the industry’s largest protocols, including Wormhole, Jump Crypto, several top DeFi projects, and leading protocols such as Solana, Cosmos, Berachain, and others. Asymmetric is also a major security contributor to an upcoming new Solana validator client called Firedancer.
The Stacks Foundation to launch sBTC in the last quarter of the year
sBTC will officially launch in the last quarter of 2024, offering a unique, decentralized, and programmable digital asset for developers. sBTC will be a collateralized asset pegged to Bitcoin in the ratio of 1:1.
The asset will benefit developers in the Bitcoin ecosystem looking for leveraged security, additional network effects, and 1.2T in latent capital of the Bitcoin network. The digital asset will also be usable in securing forms of Bitcoin DeFi, therefore paving the way for Bitcoin economy activation processes.
Stacks Foundation is experiencing major strides to secure the ecosystem further besides undergoing numerous audits on Stacks’s security layers from security contributors such as Asymmetric Research. According to Stacks Foundation’s announcement, the software infrastructure is undergoing tests with the industry players on the signer network.
The announcement also detailed that the ecosystem has onboarded a whitehat security program and real-time protection facilitated by Hypernative. Staking Defense League has also contributed to reinforcing efficiency in the software infrastructure’s operations. Additionally, there is an ongoing Immunefi bug bounty program, dedicated Stacks Foundation residents focused exclusively on fuzz and planned penetration testing throughout 2024.
